The college football recruiting landscape is forever changing and this is what happened in Week 2.
Fans were graced with another strong week of college football action in Week 2 as teams like Notre Dame and Georgia, Ohio State and Oklahoma and Auburn and Clemson all faced off. The road team won two out of three of those matchups, but they were all exciting.
What we don’t realize about games on the national stage is that elite recruits take notice. Those three contests could have had an effect on the country’s top 2018 prospects. Did it translate to commitments? Let’s take a look at the recruiting roundup for Week 3.
Note: Latest commitments, rankings and scheduled visits come from 247Sports.
Nation’s top JUCO prospect headed to Starkville
Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen doesn’t get enough attention for recruiting with the big boys in the SEC because, well, Nick Saban dominates the headlines there. Last week, he landed one of the biggest fish in the JUCO pond — the biggest, in fact — in four-star wide receiver Stephen Guidry.
The 6-foot-4, 190-pound wide out from Morganza, La., picked the Bulldogs over the likes of Alabama, LSU, Georgia, Miami and Oregon. Big victory for Mullen and Co. landing the nation’s No. 1 JUCO player for 2018.
Charlie Strong makes minor splash
Going from Texas to South Florida doesn’t exactly yield more recruiting success, and Charlie Strong is learning that early on. While he doesn’t have the same means to recruit at a high level yet, Strong made a minor splash last week, landing three-star wide out Zion Roland. The Saint Petersburg, Fla., native picked the Bulls over a few Power Five programs and should be a solid slot addition for USF. Moreover, he’s ranked the No. 504 recruit in the class.
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Illinois lands future No. 1 quarterback?
Is the future close to beginning in Champaign? Fans of the Fighting Illini certainly hope so as the Lovie Smith era hasn’t exactly gotten off to a great start. In fact, he was just 3-9 in his first season before starting the 2017 campaign shakily. He made a move in the recruiting trail, though, landing three-star dual-threat MJ Rivers last week. Illinois hasn’t had a true dual-threat since Juice Williams led the Illini to the Rose Bowl. Could Rivers, a Frisco, Texas, native, be the future?